


Beneficial Circumstances

by Voido



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Drama, Friends With Benefits, M/M, One-sided feelings, Romance, game spoilers most likely, kinda angsty, let ryuji say fuck, lots of chat tbh, mishima is thirsty af, more characters to be added as i go - Freeform, not sure how long this'll be either, rating might go up dunno yet, so is akira tho
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-19
Updated: 2018-03-20
Packaged: 2019-04-04 10:36:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14018412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Voido/pseuds/Voido
Summary: All Yuuki wanted was to spend time with his hero.All Akira wanted was to forget about his unrequited feelings for his best friend.That was enough to justify a new kind of deal, right?





	1. New Horizons

**Author's Note:**

> I don't even ship these two, what the fu-  
> The idea came up when I thought about how mean Akira can be to Mishima (even worse than to Ryuji, most of the time), and how he still seems to be Mishima's personal hero or something.

_-Hey, I hope this isn't a bad time, but this one's insane!_

If Akira were to ever find himself in the situation to describe his classmate and somehow-friend Yuuki Mishima in no more than one word, the choice would easily and undoubtedly be: _Ugh._ Not to say he hated the guy, because he didn't really, but other than his timing _always_ being ridiculously bad, he was also obnoxiously annoying.

Whoever Akira spent time with, whenever his phone buzzed and the message was from Mishima, he just couldn't stop eying his phone in annoyance. Either of his team mates had already given him their piece of mind about it, how if he didn't like the person who had texted him, it might be for the best to just not be friends with them anymore. The main issue, though, were two highly correlating things.

One: Mishima was the number one source for new Mementos requests and also the one running the Phan-Site.

Two: Lately, Akira would do _everything_ to keep his mind off his conflicting feelings he could hardly control.

That's why it was hardly a surprise that he immediately answered to the message, telling Mishima to get to the point right away. Sure, Akira wanted to finish requests to help the people, but he wasn't in the mood to listen to any dramatic stories right now. Lying on his bed, ignoring the bright red _6_ on his phone indicating the messages he'd been pretending not so have seen , all he wanted was info so he could _slay_.

He'd never told anyone, and he wasn't sure if he ever would, but going to palaces or Mementos gave him freedom. Over there, no one saw him as a creepy guy with a criminal record; over there, he was _the leader._ The one his mates trusted, the one the shadows feared.

The target wasn't much different from any others lately, so he copy-pasted the information into the Phantom Thieves chat, suggesting for them to take care of it as soon as possible. He knew that his mask sat perfectly; no one would expect the pained expression on his face when he closed the chat, or how heavily he tried to wrap his thoughts around the smell and sound of Mementos, the purring of the Mona-bus, the adrenaline when-

“Is everything alright, Akira?”

The voice was so close that he almost fell from his bed in shock. How hadn't he noticed Morgana entering the room through the window either way? Lately, Akira just wasn't himself, and even if he managed not to let it slip, it was hard to hide it from someone who lived with him.

“Yeah, I'm fine. Mishima sent me a new target.”

“Oh?”

He took the time to explain, knowing that they would all repeat the whole ordeal either way to decide if they were fine with tackling the mission. It was fine, though – as was anything that kept his thoughts at bay. Eying his phone again, he sighed. The blinking, red _6_ had turned into a _9_ , and he knew it was stupid to keep pretending he hadn't seen – after all, he'd just sent a message in the group chat.

 

_-Yo, Akira, wanna hang out after school today?_

_-Jeez, guess that's a no. Let a guy know at least!_

_-Akira?_

_-This' a long time without answer, even for u._

_-Bro._

_-K fine, I'll just believe you fell asleep right away._

_-Dude, you can text the group, but not me? Fucking rude!_

_-Shit, even Mishima…_

_-I ain't mad about a no, but ignorin 's just dirty, man!_

 

He sighed and let the phone drop onto his chest, already feeling bad about his decision to ignore the messages – piled up like that, they were even worse. It didn't need a genius to understand that Ryuji Sakamoto wasn't exactly Mister Popular, and his pushy attitude was just another proof of it. It wasn't even like Akira _wanted_ to ignore him – it just made things easier for now.

Still, hurting his friend wasn't fair, and he decided to clear things up – by making up lies, funnily enough.

 

_~I apologize._

_~It was in fact only due to Mishima being very...intrusive that I saw all these messages._

_~How about we go running tomorrow to make up for today?_

 

Lying to Ryuji felt disgusting, and Akira was glad Morgana had already curled up to sleep, because if he were _caught_ in the act of being a liar, it'd only be worse. Running with Ryuji wasn't exactly what he'd planned to do much lately, either, since it repeatedly tested his limits in keeping his eyes off his best friend's sweating body, the way his chest rapidly rose and fell, the satisfied glaze in his eyes whenever his leg didn't hurt after a long run…

Even just thinking about it _now_ was idiotic, and Akira rolled his eyes at his own attitude. If only he had at least suggested watching a movie. Going to the arcade. Hell, even a food binge challenge would've been a better idea, because then he could blame the warmth creeping up on his face when he was caught staring on the spiciness.

His phone buzzed.

 

_-Sounds amazing, dude!_

_-I've been practicing on my own too, ofc, but it ain't as much fun without ya!_

_-Been thinking about doing some other stuff, too._

_~Other stuff?_

_-Yeh, like, uh…weight- liftin'?_

 

It took Akira's whole composure not to impetuously imagine the sight of salty sweat running down Ryuji's _muscles-_

 

_-But I ain't testin' my body like that , so I ain't darin' to try alone._

_-Didn't ya mention somethin' about it to Ann?_

_-Dude, we should totally hit that together!_

 

And while every single piece of leftover sanity in Akira screamed _NO, BAD IDEA, ABORT_ , it didn't even surprise him that his fingers replied on their own accord.

 

_~Sure, why not._

_-Sweet!_

 

New messages popped up, this time from Mishima.

 

_-I've been wondering, lately, Kurusu-kun._

_\- Is there a reason you still pretend not to be a PT?_

_-You know I'm perfectly aware it's you._

_-Just curious what it is that makes me not trustworthy._

 

While Akira wasn't exactly in the mood to talk to Mishima more than necessary, it was _still_ better than the ideas vividly spinning in his head, each and every annoying one of them revolving around Ryuji, his stupidly adorable smile and the mental image of the exhausted red on his cheeks not being caused by running, but-

 

_~Better that than accidentally confessing to the wrong person out of habit._

_~Like you said, you're aware._

_~If you are, why do I need to confirm it?_

 

He needed coffee, desperately, and he needed it now. When he made his way down, Sojiro was just in the act of cleaning up, and Akira went to help him without a second thought, trying to ignore the high-pitched voice of the woman on TV.

“How can you endure that?” he asked without giving it much thought, almost a bit startled when Sojiro actually answered to it.

“Eh, better than anything else that's on, and better than silence. Sometimes, it's not about the stuff being good, but about it being better than any other option, kid.”

Was that so? Akira considered trying it, too, although the thing that immediately came up in his mind wasn't necessarily something he'd want to share with Sojiro – or any of his friends, either. It was a weird thought, and he was pretty sure that if anyone found out about it, they'd highly question his sanity.

Either way, though, when he returned to the attic about half an hour later, putting on sleeping clothes and checking his phone for new messages, his mind was made up. He needed distraction from his hormone-filled fantasies, and he needed to make sure that the person distracting him was trust-worthy, loyal and just far enough out of his regular group of friends so that there was no chance of it turning awkward.

 

_-Sure, but am I not your friend?_

_-Like, I'd appreciate if you could be honest with me._

_-I trust you, too, after all._

 

And that was exactly why, instead of explaining himself to Mishima or even ignoring him, he entirely changed the topic to set his plan into motion.

 

_~Wanna hang out on the weekend?_


	2. Substitution

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Somehow, this is writing itself, and somehow, I think that's the reason it almost feels "rushed" to me...kinda hard to explain. xD

After having made plans for the weekend, running with Ryuji hadn't been half as scary anymore. Sure, Akira had caught himself staring at his friend an almost uncomfortable amount of times  either way, but for now, at least he knew that if Ryuji asked about the gym-thing again, there'd be a high chance he could say no.

Because one of the main, very useful reasons why Mishima made such a great unaware partner in this whole ordeal was: He was clingy. On levels that Akira didn't even understand, considering how little time he'd ever spent with his classmate. He wouldn't complain, though, as he profited from it. It'd be a foolproof guarantee that he'd be able to say he already had plans. He wouldn't make use of it all the time – he  _did_ want to spend time with Ryuji still, after all – but whenever he needed some distance from his best friend, or a way to cope with these stupid  _feelings…_

That being said, being with Mishima was still a test of patience. He was a kind person, no doubt about it, but way too eager for his own good. Sometimes, he came up with ideas for the Phan-Site that Akira found himself almost unable not to roll his eyes at, and at the same time it was endearing to see someone appreciate their hard work so much. All things considered, hanging out with Mishima was just  _weird_ . The bad part being how annoying he could be, the good part being how much he seemed to be willing to accept everything Akira threw at him.

The thought put a dirty smirk on his lips.

“Thanks again for asking me here today, Kurusu-kun.”

And it only intensified at the sound of innocent sheepishness in Mishima's voice. They'd decided on going to Harajuku again, since the last time they'd been there, they had only ended up grabbing food with Ryuji instead of enjoying the place.

“Sure. I figured you were right.”

“A-about what?”

Could this guy get any more obvious about his admiration?

“About us being friends. I _should_ have put more trust in you. I hope it's not too late to make up for it.”

Akira couldn't help but absorb the soft blush on Mishima's cheeks, the way he averted his eyes for a second in flattered embarrassment, only to chuckle and smile sweetly.

“Of course not! I'll always support you, Kurusu-kun!”

This moment was the very first time Akira  _actively_ considered grabbing his friend by the shoulders, pressing him into the cold wall and stealing a tainted, wrong kiss from him.

 

The second time came about a week later, when he'd agreed to play some games over at Mishima's place. He wasn't as much of a high tech freak as Futaba, but his collection was far more impressive than the few retro games Akira owned. It was refreshing, and kind of fun. But at the same time, it helped  _nothing_ in trying to forget about the person he would most likely prefer playing games with under regular circumstances.

The scenery was similar – they were both sitting on more-or-less comfortable chairs, focused on the game, cracking one or the other joke here and there, and overall just enjoying themselves. Yet, the feelings were all different.

Akira didn't feel like staring at Mishima, enjoying the way a smile crept up on his face, imagining his expression to turn into something far less relaxed-

Well, maybe he felt like it a  _little bit_ , but when he put the controller down and reached out to touch his friend's shoulder, causing him to look over in startled surprise, all he could think of were the words of advice Sojiro had so carelessly, obliviously thrown at him.

_Sometimes, it's not about the stuff being good._

Sitting here and lying to both Mishima and himself didn't have to be a good thing, and Akira knew that it wasn't. All that mattered was for it to be better than any other options he had. Better than thinking about his best friend whenever there was nothing life-threatening on his mind. Better than  thinking about how his own hands would feel grabbing into the firm, sweaty muscle. Better than imagining any stifled, throaty moans.

All these things made it so disgustingly easy to lean in, to close his eyes without even trying to capture the surprised look he was given.

As long as it was better than the other options, it was enough to justify exploiting Mishima's obvious feelings, imagining his lips to be someone else's, imagining his hands to be someone else's, imagining his feelings to be Ryu-

As long as it eased his own pain, Akira knew it would be enough.

 

There was nothing overly romantic about the times he spent with Mishima, although Akira could admit that it was more genuine fun than he'd originally expected. It was going fine, so far. It was either this or going to Mementos to let off some steam. If neither were possible, he found himself studying with Makoto or accompanying Futaba whenever she wanted to go somewhere – all in all, he was constantly busy, leaving him little time to think about and even less to spend with Ryuji.

Or so Akira thought, because just a few weeks after this whole ordeal had started, he found himself being pulled to the rooftop when classes had ended. For the longest time, he'd been able to evade this by leaving class right after the bell's ringing, but this time, Ryuji seemed to have been prepared – knowing him, it wasn't out of the question that he might have skipped classes.

“Is there a reason we need to stand in the cold, stormy rain?”

“I was thinkin' you might tell me, dude.”

The tone in his voice was sharp, although it almost immediately dried up, as if he was too tired to actually try and be mad. This was the first time in almost three weeks that Akira had the time to actively look at Ryuji. Whenever they met up with the others, neither of them were as open about their feelings as when they were alone, so it wasn't much of a surprise that Akira hadn't noticed how worried his friend seemed to be.

“You're avoidin' me, and usually I wouldn't even give half a shit and just accept it, 'cause everyone leaves at some point. But I always thought you wouldn't, y'know?”

What was he supposed to say? The last thing he wanted was for Ryuji's and his own life to entirely drift apart, but Akira also couldn't deny that all this time they hadn't been hanging out, he'd finally been able to _breathe_ again. He knew how selfish it was to expect he could just come back whenever he was ready to keep his feelings under control – even if he wasn't sure if that would _ever_ happen – but it was definitely a better option than confessing.

“I never meant to avoid you, Ryuji.”

“Yeah, right. Ugh, forget it.”

_He's going to leave._

Akira knew that he had to say something in order to save their friendship. Anything to ensure that Ryuji knew that he meant a lot, but without letting him know just  _how much_ that was. It would only drive them apart. There was nothing positive in letting him know. So instead, Akira reached out for Ryuji's shoulder before he could reach the door, stopping him before he could even dare to  _accept_ this.

“Ryuji, _please_. I just…haven't been in the mood for the things we usually do much lately.”

_Because I'm too busy staring at you like a lovesick idiot who can't keep themselves under control-_

“And I didn't wanna drag you down with me.”

_So instead I'm dragging another friend down and justifying it by pretending it's my personal right to do whatever hurts_ me _the least-_

“Dude…”

At least it was enough for Ryuji to turn around, worry still quite visible on his face, but every kind of even the faintest animosity gone. It made Akira feel dirty, because he knew he was in absolutely no position to be pitied. After all, he was lying to everyone who meant something to him, or to whom he meant something.

“Why didn't ya just tell me? Shit, I was thinkin' the worst stuff, I swear.”

“That was not my intention.”

And because Akira had absolutely no self-control when it came to wanting to make Ryuji feel better, he bumped their shoulders together and put on a cocky grin.

“You said something about needing a spotter for weight-training, right? I'll be arrogant and say I'm not half-bad, so…”

And he was sure that nothing in the world could ever make him as happy as the huge grin spreading on his friend's face, the way his eyes lit up, and his whole posture turning more upright as if the sun had started shining for the first time in years. It didn't help with the feelings at all, but then again, Akira now had different ways to deal with those.

When Ryuji stared into space while they were waiting for the train later, Akira fished his phone out of his pocket and typed a short, simply and suggestive enough message:

 

_~Meet on friday?_


End file.
